On Thursday, US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter announced a major overhaul to the military’s personnel hiring system, allowing civilian recruiters to bypass the federal hiring process, and revamping the "up or out" promotion system, to enhance workforce flexibility.
The changes are part of a Pentagon Force of the Future initiative, to attract and retain skilled staff adept in emerging technologies by providing workplace, compensation, and opportunities for advancement similar to what is available in the civilian market.
The defense secretary argues that the "up or out" promotion system which focuses on advancing military personnel based on tenure, rather than skill set or necessity, is not necessarily "broken," but that the United States needs to shift away from a one-size-fits-all format.
The Force of the Future will instead streamline promotions for the most talented personnel and service members, with a focus on "recognizing and incentivizing the very best performers – making promotions even more merit-based than it already is," explained Carter.
The initiative also aims to provide military service branches the discretion to temporarily defer promotions for officers who are pursue educational opportunities, advanced training, or time in the private sector, so that personnel are not forced to take a step back in their career while acquiring the preparation necessary to best perform their duties.
"If the services can allow those warriors temporarily to defer their promotion boards, it will help ensure that officers and their personnel managers who pursue less traditional career paths for them won’t be harmed for it, and give them time to meet all of DOPMA’s (Defense Officer Personnel Management Act) promotion requirements before they’re considered for promotion," said Carter.
The sweeping overhaul will also grant civilian defense personnel parental leave, comparable to concessions offered high-performing individuals in the private sector, which the Pentagon has long resisted offering its staff.
"Parental leave is fully paid for military personnel, and the same should be true for their civilian colleagues," said Carter. "This is important for retaining civilian talents, especially since we want to retain people who are experienced, but not at the end of their career—which is exactly the time people are having families."
Finally, the initiative seeks to pressure Congress to provide the Pentagon direct-hire authority, allowing them to hire individuals for civilian jobs on the spot.
"Make no mistake: this is going to be huge," said Carter, noting that the change allows the Pentagon to bypass lengthy federal hiring protocols which first require candidates to apply for jobs through the USAJOBS web portal.
"This has the potential to be a real game-changer for us," said Carter. "Our civilian recruiters will be able to go to campus job fairs, do some interviews, and if they find someone who’s the right fit, they can make a tentative offer on the spot, pending security clearance – potentially cutting down those 90 days to zero."
